Healthcare Rallies in Seven Iowa Cities Will Call for 'Medicare for All'

Iowans will rally in seven cities this weekend to ask for "Medicare for All."

The rallies will call on the federal government to offer Medicare—the healthcare plan for people over age 65—to all Americans. It's a response to ongoing problems with the affordability of health insurance and efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.

Chris Schwartz is a community organizer with Americans for Democratic Action Iowa and a Black Hawk County Supervisor. He says people around the state are very engaged with the issue of healthcare, and the idea of a single-payer system is becoming more popular.

"It just shows how important it is for us to be putting out an alternate vision for what our future should be rather than just saying no all the time," Schwartz says.

Schwartz says expanding Medicare to all Americans is the only way to make healthcare affordable for everyone.

"Medicare for All" events will be held in the Quad Cities, Dubuque, Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Iowa City, Des Moines and Sioux City. Elected officials, service providers, candidates and people with personal healthcare stories will speak at the rallies.

As the push to replace the Affordable Care Act moves to the Senate, Iowa's senior senator says that chamber will avoid some of the missteps he saw in the House.

Republican Chuck Grassley says the Senate won't bring a healthcare bill to the floor for a vote until 51 members have committed support. He's hopeful that majority will result in a smooth vote, on the first try.